By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
MERIDEN, N.H. — Tuesday is normally a slow day at the post office in Meriden, and this served to be a blessing, as a vehicle drove through the foyer when the operator appears to have accidentally hit the gas instead of the brake. Fortunately there were no customers in the building, and no injuries reported to the driver or employees.
“The operator was trying to hit the brake and something happened where either her foot jammed, or got stuck on the mat, and may have accidentally hit the accelerator,” Officer Rob DePietro said.
DePietro said the operator hopped a curb and went through the doors of the post office.
“No other issues with the driver,” DePietro said. “It was clearly an accident. Nobody was in the foyer, so we got lucky here today in Plainfield.”
The accident occurred at the post office located at 54 Main Street at 10:47 a.m. Postmaster Patrick Greene was the only one in the post office at the time, and he was safe behind his desk. There was also a Kimball Union Academy employee in his office that is housed in the same building, who was unharmed.
The car was towed from the scene as precaution, and the door to the building was broken. There are two broken windows that Greene said have been boarded up with plywood. Fortunately the security door to the post office was intact, so there is no issue in locking up for the night.
Greene said the post office was only closed for about 45 minutes while the car was removed, and fixes were made. DePietro said there was no major structural damage to the building, or issues with electrical.
Greene noted that about a decade ago a similar accident occurred, and he said it was repaired with a casement unit.
“She was lucky in that regard,” Greene said. “If it had been the original building, she could have gotten hurt.
Plainfield Police, Plainfield Fire Department and the Kimball Union Academy maintenance staff responded quickly and efficiently, said DePietro. He stressed that this could have been a lot worse and he was thankful that nobody was in the post office.
“I know it is an accident but I can’t help but think we got really lucky, because it could have been so much worse,” DePietro said.
The post office leases from Kimball Union Academy, and attempts to reach Head of School Tyler Lewis and Facilities Manager Jason Avery about a damage assessment were unsuccessful.
